Round up week 44 (27 October-2 November)

A round up of BBC announcements, press releases and blogs, plus some highlights from our TV, radio and online output from the last week.

BBC Sounds: new podcasts, music mixes, classic comedy and drama now available

The BBC has launched BBC Sounds, bringing together 80,000 hours of unmissable music, radio and podcasts, available live and on-demand in a personalised single app and website.

Peter Jackson's They Shall Not Grow Old to premiere on BBC Two

The Lord Of The Rings director's highly anticipated First World War archive feature film They Shall Not Grow Old is to receive its broadcast premiere exclusively on BBC Two on Sunday 11 November at 9.30pm. The film forms part of the BBC’s commemorative coverage around the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day.

Jamie Cullum to release BBC Children In Need’s official single for 2018

Love Is In The Picture was released on 31 October, will receive its debut television performance live on the 2018 BBC Children in Need Appeal Show on 16 November, at 9.50pm on BBC One. A new Stacey Dooley documentary on homeless teenagers will also be broadcast for Children In Need.

Announcements and blogs

Radio

In the New Year, Sara Cox will present new weekday Drivetime show on Radio 2, while Trevor Nelson is to present a 10pm-midnight show. The winners of the BBC Radio 2 Young Choristers Of The Year 2018 have been announced, while Samhain Live saw BBC Gaeilge, BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Radio Foyle lure listeners and viewers into Londonderry’s underworld on 31 October for the climax of the city’s famous Hallowe’en carnival.

Drama

Doing Money is a one-off drama commission for BBC Two of a shocking true story about slavery in modern Britain, while Callum Turner and Holliday Grainger are to lead the cast of BBC One’s conspiracy thriller The Capture. The BBC and FX are also to expand content partnership, meaning rights to new FX original series such as Devs, from acclaimed UK writer/director Alex Garland.

Factual

Louis Theroux returns to BBC Two on Sunday 4 November with a new series, Louis Theroux's Altered States, exploring the unusual ways modern America deals with birth, love and death.

Corporate

The BBC commissioned Frontier Economics to explore longer-term funding options relating to the over-75s TV licence concession, and the report has been published ahead of a consultation. BBC Academy’s Digital Cities Belfast Week (#DigiBelfast) returns 6-16 November with a series of free events and workshops aimed at finding new talent, developing skills and bringing the creative sector together.